Group-judged multimedia competition

ABSTRACT

Methods and apparatus related to executing an online multimedia game. Some implementations are directed to a method for determining a matchup of two players, receiving multimedia selections from the players of the matchup, providing the selections to other players, and determining a winner of the matchup based on ratings provided by the other players. Some implementations are directed to prompting one player of the matchup for a multimedia subject for the multimedia selections and receiving either a multimedia subject or a deferral to the other player of the matchup for selection of a multimedia subject.

BACKGROUND

Users may access online publically available multimedia presentations.For example, users may access video and/or audio from one or moreproviders. One or more of the users may have interest in sharing videosand/or audio that was accessed via a multimedia provider with one ormore other users. For example, a user may view a video, find the videoentertaining, and have interest in providing the video to one or moreother users.

SUMMARY

The present disclosure is directed generally to various methods andsystems for executing an online game. In various implementations,executing the online game comprises: transmitting prompts and/or otherdigital content to various client computing devices of usersparticipating in the online game; and receiving, in response toproviding the digital content, selections, ratings and/or otherresponsive user interface input from the various client computingdevices and/or additional client computing devices. The transmittingand/or receiving can optionally be performed by one or more servercomputing devices, such as a collection of one or more server computingdevices operating remotely from the client computing devices (e.g., oneor more server devices in the “cloud”).

In some of those various implementations, a sequence of interactionswith various client computing devices is performed, where each of thelater in the sequence interactions is dynamically tailored based on oneor more (e.g., all) of the earlier in the sequence interactions. Forexample, a first interaction in a sequence can include transmitting afirst prompt to a first client computing device, where the first promptsolicits provision of a multimedia subject. The first interaction canfurther include receiving, from the first client computing device inresponse to providing the prompt, a selection or other user interfaceinteraction responsive to the prompt. The second interaction in thesequence can include transmitting a second prompt to a second clientcomputing device, where the second prompt is dynamically tailored basedon the selection or other user interface interaction received from thefirst client computing device in response to providing the prompt. Thesecond interaction can further include receiving, from the second clientcomputing device in response to providing the second prompt, a selectionor other user interface interaction responsive to the second prompt. Yetfurther interactions can occur, with the first and/or second clientcomputing devices—and/or other client computing devices, and canlikewise be dynamically tailored based on one or more priorinteractions. For example, digital content can be transmitted to otherclient computing devices of one or more users deemed judges, where thedigital content is tailored based on the user interface interactionsreceived in response to the first prompt, the second prompt, and/orother prompts.

In these and other manners, downstream interactions are dynamicallytailored based on upstream interaction(s). Moreover, in manyimplementations, prompts and/or other digital content transmitted toclient computing device(s) in one or more of the downstream interactionscan be tailored such that computational resource usage by the clientcomputing device(s) is mitigated and/or such that cognitive burden onuser(s) of the client computing device(s) is minimized. As onenon-limiting example, a downstream prompt can be transmitted to a givenclient computing device and can include a plurality of selectablegraphical elements that are each directed toward a multimedia subjectthat is chosen based on upstream interaction(s) with other clientcomputing device(s). In this manner, a given user of the given clientcomputing device may not need to utilize the given client computingdevice to perform computational resource intensive searching for and/orbrowsing of various multimedia subjects based on prior upstreaminteraction(s). Rather, the downstream prompt can already includegraphical elements that are directed toward particular multimediasubject(s) chosen based on upstream interactions. Moreover, cognitiveburden on the given user can be eased, through the display and/or otherpresentation of such particular multimedia subject(s).

The online game of various implementations disclosed herein includes aseries of rounds, with each round including a matchup of two or moreplayers from a group of players. For each round, one of the playersselects a song title, and both of the players select videos ofperformances of that song by different artists. The two videos areprovided to the other members of the group. The other members judge thevideos and a score is determined for the players for the round. For eachsubsequent round, two other members of the group are paired, and theother members of the group act as judges for the round.

As an example, a group may include five members and a series of roundsmay be determined, with each round including one player designated asthe “home” player and a second player designated as a “visitor” player,and the other three members designated as “judges.” The home player maybe provided with a prompt to either select a song title or to deferselection to the visitor player. If the home player selects a songtitle, the visitor player then selects a video of a performance of thesong, and then the home player selects a second video version of thesong. The other three judges vote to determine a winner. If the homeplayer instead defers, the visitor player selects a song title, the homeplayer selects a video version of the song, and then the visitor playerselects a second video version of the song. Subsequent rounds mayinclude matchups between other members of the group and may continueuntil, for example, all members have been paired at least once with eachother. An overall winner may be selected based on the scores from eachround. In some implementations, one or more final rounds may be includedafter a series of initial rounds, such as a series of playoff orchampionship rounds that include the highest scoring players fromprevious rounds.

The home player and visitor player may have restrictions on the videosthat may be selected for each round. For example, video selections maybe limited to videos that do not include the original version of theselected song and/or to videos by performers other than the originalperformer of the song. Also, for example, a player may be restrictedfrom selecting a video that includes the most popular or highest chartedversion of a song. In various implementations, the player(s) can berestricted from selecting video(s) via prompts and/or other digitalcontent transmitted to client computing device(s) of the player(s). Forexample, the prompt(s) can include only selectable graphical interfaceelements for videos that meet one or more criteria (e.g., that are notthe original version and/or that are by a performer that is not theoriginal performer) and/or the digital content can prevent selection ofcertain videos. In this manner, computational resource intensiveinteractions via the client computing device(s) of the player(s) can bemitigated, through prevention of user selection of and/or searching forvideo(s) that fail to meet one or more criteria. Moreover, cognitiveburden on the player(s) can be eased.

Judges may score a round by selecting one of the two videos from theround as the preferred video. In some implementations, judges may assigna rating to each of the videos. For example, a judge may score each ofthe videos on a scale of 1 to 10 in addition to or instead of selectinga preferred video. In some implementations, judges may submit commentaryalong with ratings. For example, a judge may be prompted to provide acommentary describing why the judge preferred one of videos. In someimplementations, judges and/or players may be penalized for latesubmissions of videos and/or ratings. For example, a player may beforced to forfeit a round if the player does not provide a song titleand/or video selection within a time period. Also, for example, ajudge's rating may not be used and/or a judge may incur an additionalpenalty for not submitting a rating for a round within a time limit.

In some implementations, a computer implemented method is provided thatincludes the steps of: identifying a group, the group including aplurality of players; determining one or more matchups, wherein eachmatchup includes two of the players; and for each matchup: designatingone player as a home player and the other as a visitor player; providingthe home player with a prompt to provide a multimedia subject;receiving, in response to the prompt, one of the multimedia subject anda deferral to the visitor player; receiving a first media selection fromthe home player, the first media selection having the multimediasubject; receiving a second media selection from the visitor player, thesecond media selection having the multimedia subject; providingindications of the first media selection and the second media selectionto the players of the group that are not the home player and the visitorplayer; receiving ratings of the first media selection and the secondmedia selection by the players of the group; and determining a winner ofeach matchup, wherein the winner is one of the home player and thevisitor player, and wherein the winner is determined based on theratings.

This method and other implementations of technology disclosed herein mayeach optionally include one or more of the following features.

The method may further include the step of determining an overall scoreeach of the players of the group based on the winner of each matchup.

For at least one matchup, the method may further include: providing thevisitor player with a second prompt, the second prompt including anindication of the multimedia subject, and wherein the second mediaselection of the visitor player is received in response to the secondprompt.

The method may further include, for each matchup: determining a composerof the first media selection; determining a validity of the first mediaselection based on the multimedia subject; and providing an error promptto the home player if the validity of the first media selection isindicative of the first media selection being invalid. In some of thoseimplementations, the multimedia subject may include an original composerof the multimedia subject, and validity of the first media selection maybe determined based on the original composer of the multimedia subject.In some of those versions, the first media selection may be invalid ifthe composer of the first media selection is the same as the originalcomposer.

The method may further include, for each matchup: determining one ormore invalid versions of the multimedia subject; and providing an errorprompt to the home player if the first media selection is one of theinvalid versions. Invalid versions may be one of: an original version ofthe multimedia subject and a most-popular version of the multimediasubject.

In some implementations, a computer implemented method is provided andincludes the steps of: determining a matchup of a first player and asecond player of a group of players; identifying a multimedia subject;providing the second player with an indication of the multimediasubject; receiving a first player media selection from the first player,wherein the first player media selection is an indication of amultimedia file containing a third-party rendition of the multimediasubject by a first creator; receiving, in response to providing theindication, a second player media selection from the second player,wherein the second player media selection is an indication of amultimedia file containing a second third-party rendition of themultimedia subject by a second creator; providing indications of thefirst player media selection and the second player media selection toone or more judges, the one or more judges including players of thegroup of players that are not the first player and are not the secondplayer; receiving, in response to providing the indications to thejudges, ratings of the first player media selection and the secondplayer media selection by each of one or more players of the group ofplayers that are not the first player and are not the second player; anddetermining a winner of the matchup based on the ratings.

This method and other implementations of technology disclosed herein mayeach optionally include one or more of the following features.

Identifying the multimedia subject may include: prompting the firstplayer to select the multimedia subject; and receiving the multimediasubject from the first player in response to the prompting of the firstplayer.

Identifying the multimedia subject may include: prompting the firstplayer to select the multimedia subject; receiving, in response to theprompting, a deferral from the first player; prompting the second playerto select the multimedia subject; and receiving, in response to theprompting, the multimedia subject from the second player.

The first player media selection and the second player media selectionmay be music videos. In some of those implementations, the multimediasubject may be a song title. In some of those versions, the first playermedia selection and the second player media selection may be coverversions of the multimedia subject. The song title may originate from acomposer that is distinct from the first creator and the second creator.

The method may further include the steps of: determining a secondmatchup of a third player and the first player; identifying a secondmultimedia subject; receiving a third media selection from the thirdplayer, wherein the third media selection is an indication of amultimedia file containing a third-party rendition of the secondmultimedia subject; receiving, in response to providing the indication,a fourth media selection from the first player, wherein the fourth mediaselection is an indication of a multimedia file containing a secondthird-party rendition of the second multimedia subject; providingindications of the third media selection and the fourth media selectionto one or more of the players of the group of players that are not thefirst player and are not the third player; receiving, in response toproviding the indications to the players, second matchup ratings of thethird media selection and the fourth media selection by each of theplayers of the group of players that are not the first player and arenot the third player; and determining a winner of the second matchup,wherein the winner is one of the first player and the third player, andwherein the winner is determined based on the second matchup ratings. Insome of those implementations, the method may further includedetermining overall standings of the first player, the second player,and the third player based on the winner of the matchup and the winnerof the second matchup.

Each of the ratings may be a preference of the first selection or thesecond selection.

The method may further include the steps of: providing the second playerwith an option to select the multimedia subject; and receiving, inresponse to the providing of the option, a deferral to the first playerto select the multimedia subject.

A given rating of a player of the players may include a written opinionof at least one of the first media selection and the second mediaselection.

The method may further include: receiving a request for extension oftime from one of the players.

Determining the winner of the matchup may be based on ratings of theplayers that were received within a time limit.

In some implementations, a method is provided that includes: determininga matchup of at least a first player and a second player of a group ofplayers; identifying one or more criteria for multimedia selection forthe matchup; and receiving, via at least one communication network, afirst player selection made by the first player via a first playercomputing device. The first player selection is an indication of one ormore multimedia files that satisfy the one or more criteria formultimedia selection for the matchup. The method further includes:providing, via the communication network, a second player computingdevice of the second player with an indication of the one or morecriteria for multimedia selection for the matchup; and receiving, viathe communication network in response to providing the indication, asecond player selection made by the second player via the second playercomputing device. The second player selection is an additionalindication of one or more additional multimedia files that satisfy theone or more criteria for multimedia selection for the matchup. Themethod further includes providing indications of the first playerselection and the second player selection to one or more judges. The oneor more judges include players of the group of players that are not thefirst player and are not the second player. Providing the indications isvia the communication network and includes providing the indications tocorresponding computing devices of the players of the group of playersthat are not the first player and are not the second player. The methodfurther includes: receiving, via the communications network in responseto providing the indications to the judges, ratings of the first playerselection and the second player selection by each of one or more playersof the group of players that are not the first player and are not thesecond player; determining a winner of the matchup based on the ratings;and transmitting, via the communication network, a graphical interfacethat identifies the winner of the matchup, the graphical interfacetransmitted for presentation to one or more of the players of the groupof players.

These and other implementations of the technology may include one ormore of the following features.

In some implementations, identifying the one or more criteria for themultimedia selection for the matchup includes: transmitting a prompt tothe first player computing device; and receiving, from the first playercomputing device in response to transmitting the prompt, the one or morecriteria for the multimedia selection for the matchup. The one or morecriteria for the multimedia selection for the matchup are based on userinterface input generated through interaction of the first player withat least one user interface input device of the first player computingdevice. In some of those implementations, providing the second playercomputing device of the second player with an indication of the one ormore criteria for multimedia selection for the matchup occurs inresponse to receiving the criteria for the multimedia selection for thematchup from the first player computing device in response to theprompt. In some versions of those implementations, receiving the firstplayer selection made by the first player via the first player computingdevice occurs after receiving the second player selection made by thesecond player via the second player computing device. Further, in someversions of those implementations, the method further includes:transmitting a selection prompt to the first player computing deviceafter receiving the second player selection made by the second playervia the second player computing device—and receiving the first playerselection made by the first player via the first player computing deviceis in response to interaction of the first player with the selectionprompt. The method can further include generating the selection promptbased on: the second player selection and/or the one or more criteriafor multimedia selection for the matchup. For example, generating theselection prompt based on both: the second player selection, and the oneor more criteria for multimedia selection for the matchup can include:generating the prompt to include suggestions only for selections thatare not the same as the second player selection, and that satisfy theone or more criteria for multimedia selection for the matchup.

In some implementations, identifying the one or more criteria for themultimedia selection for the matchup includes transmitting a prompt tothe first player computing device. The prompt presents the first playerwith: a selection option that enables the user to define the one or morecriteria for the multimedia selection for the matchup and causes thesecond player to first make a selection that satisfies the one or morecriteria; and a deferral option that enables the second player to definethe one or more criteria for the multimedia selection for the matchupand causes the first player to first make a selection that satisfies theone or more criteria. In some of those implementations, identifying theone or more criteria for the multimedia selection for the matchupfurther includes, in response to selection of the deferral option viathe first player computing device: transmitting, to the second playercomputing device, a criteria prompt that prompts the second user todefine the one or more criteria for the multimedia selection for thematchup; and receiving, in response to the criteria prompt, the one ormore criteria for the multimedia selection for the matchup.

In some implementations, the first player selection is a first set listthat defines a plurality of first songs and a sequence for the firstsongs, and the second player selection is a second set list that definesa plurality of second songs and a sequence for the second songs. In someof those implementations, the one or more criteria for the multimediaselection for the matchup include one or more of: at least one originalartist criteria, and at least one temporal criteria. In some versions ofthose implementations, the one or more criteria for the multimediaselection for the matchup include the at least one temporal criteria,and the at least one temporal criteria defines at least one calendaryear.

In some implementations, the first player selection is a first musicvideo that is a cover version of a first song by an original artist, andthe second player selection is a second music video that is a coverversion of a second song by the original artist. In some of thoseimplementations, the one or more criteria for the multimedia selectionfor the matchup include the original artist. In some versions of thoseimplementations, identifying the one or more criteria comprisesautomatically identifying the original artist based on recent death ofthe original artist (e.g., as indicated by a recent news story). Forexample, the original artist may be automatically identified, and a newcompetition started, in response to one or more electronic resourcesindicating the death of the original artist.

In some implementations providing indications of the first playerselection and the second player selection to the one or more judgesincludes: providing an indication of the first player selection to thesecond player and to the players of the group of players that are notthe first player and are not the second player; and providing anindication of the second player selection to the first player and to theplayers of the group of players that are not the first player and arenot the second player.

In some implementations, the method further includes: receiving, via thecommunication network, a third player selection made by a third playervia a third player computing device. The third player selection is anindication of one or more multimedia files that satisfy the one or morecriteria for multimedia selection for the matchup. In some of thoseimplementations, the method further includes: providing indications ofthe third player selection to at least the first player and the secondplayer; and receiving, in response to providing the indications of thethird player selection, ratings of the third player selection by atleast the first player and the second player. In those implementations,determining the winner of the matchup is further based on the ratings ofthe third player selection.

Other implementations may include at least one non-transitory computerreadable storage medium storing instructions executable by a processorto perform a method such as one or more of the methods described herein.Yet another implementation may include a system including memory and oneor more processors operable to execute instructions, stored in thememory, to perform a method such as one or more of the methods describedherein.

It should be appreciated that all combinations of the foregoing conceptsand additional concepts discussed in greater detail herein arecontemplated as being part of the inventive subject matter disclosedherein. For example, all combinations of claimed subject matterappearing at the end of this disclosure are contemplated as being partof the inventive subject matter disclosed herein.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an example environment in which an onlinevideo sharing game may be implemented.

FIG. 2 is an example list of rounds of play for a group of members.

FIG. 3A is a diagram of an example of information transfer in a round ofplay where the home player selects a song title.

FIG. 3B is a diagram of an example of information transfer in a round ofplay where the home player defers selecting a song title.

FIG. 4 is an example notification that may be provided to a home playerat the beginning of a round.

FIG. 5 is an example interface that may be provided to a player toprompt the player to select a music video in response to the otherplayer selecting a song title.

FIG. 6 is an example interface that may be provided to a player toprompt the player to select a music video in response to the otherplayer selecting a music video.

FIG. 7 is an example interface that may be provided to a judge to promptthe judge to rate and comment on the video selections of the round.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart of an example method for executing an online videosubmission game and determining a winner of a round of the online game.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart of an example method for determining rounds ofplay for an online game and determining scores for each round.

FIG. 10 illustrates a block diagram of an example computer system.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

A group of users may have interest in sharing online multimedia relatedcontent, such as audio files or videos, and may have further interest incompeting among the group to determine which users share moreentertaining multimedia related content. For example, a user may providea video to a group of other users and the other users may rate the videobased on one or more characteristics, such as entertainment value,personal preferences, and/or talent of the performers of the video. Insome implementations, the shared video may include music and/orperformances by one or more actors and/or musicians. For example, a usermay share a video that is a music video and that includes a liveperformance by musicians and/or a cinematic video accompanying themusic. Music videos may include songs performed by the original artistof the song and/or a music video may include a cover version of a song(i.e., a version of a song performed by an act other than the originalperformer).

In some implementations, a group of players may be paired togetherthrough a series of rounds of head-to-head competitions to submit videos(and/or other multimedia related content, such as set lists), with oneor more restrictions placed on video submissions by the others. In around where two players are competing against each other, the othermembers of the group may vote on the preferred video selection of thetwo players' videos. For example, a round may include two users pairedup as competitors, and both users may be required to submit coverversions of a particular song. The other members of the group may act asjudges and vote, based on personal preference, which of the videos ispreferred. Voting may include, for example, selecting one of the videosover the other video, writing comments regarding the submitted videos,and/or otherwise rating the videos to indicate the preferences of ajudge for one of the videos.

In some implementations, one of the users competing in a round may bedesignated as the “home player” and a second user may be designated the“visitor player.” The home player may be given an option to select asong or to pass song selection to the visitor player (i.e., “deferring”song selection). If the home player selects a song title, the visitorplayer selects a video of a performance of the selected song. In someimplementations, one or more restrictions may be placed on videoselection, such as restricting video selections to cover versions of thesong. If the home player passes song selection to the visitor player,the visitor selects a song, the home player selects a video of that songfirst, and the visitor player selects a video last.

In some implementations, a group of three or more users are selected fora competition, and each of the users of the group acts as both a playerand a judge for the competition. For example, each of the users can beprovided with a prompt to select multimedia related content thatsatisfies one or more criteria, and multimedia related contentselections received for the users based on user interface inputsprovided in response to the prompts. Further, each of the users can beprovided with an indication of the multimedia related content selectionsof the other users, and asked to rank and/or provide other feedback onthe multimedia related content selections of the other users. Aperformance metric for each of the users can then be determined based onthe feedback provided by the other users.

As one example, prompts can be transmitted to client computing devicesof Users 1-5. Each of the prompts can, for example, prompt acorresponding user to select a cover video for any one of a plurality ofsongs originally by a given original musician and/or originally of agiven original album. In various implementations, each of the promptscan be configured to restrict selections to video(s) satisfying thecriteria (e.g., originally by a given original musician and/ororiginally of a given original album). For example, the prompts can eachinclude selectable elements only for video(s) that satisfy the criteria,can prevent selection of video(s) that fail to satisfy the criteria,and/or can restrict searching of video(s) to only videos that satisfythe criteria (e.g., through automatic setting of search filters).Moreover, in additional or alternative implementations, each of theprompts can be configured based on user interface input received inresponse to prior prompts provided to prior user client computingdevices. For example, a subsequently transmitted prompt can beconfigured to exclude, or prevent selection of, video(s) selected viainteraction(s) of prior user(s) in response to prior prompt(s). AfterUsers 1-5 have each selected a corresponding cover video, a ranking orother judging interface can be presented to each of Users 1-5 (and/oroptionally to additional users), where each interface enables thecorresponding user to provide feedback related to the cover videosselected by other users. For example, a graphical user interface can betransmitted to a client device of User 1, that solicits User 1 to rankthe cover videos selected by Users 2-4. Similarly, a graphical userinterface can be transmitted to User 2, that solicits User 2 to rank thecover videos selected by User 1, User 3, and User 4. Similartransmissions to client devices of Users 3, 4, and 5 can be made, thateach solicit the corresponding user to rank cover videos selected byother users. A winner can be selected based on the rankings, and digitalcontent transmitted to one or more of the client devices of Users 1-5 toinform them of the winner.

As another example, prompts can be transmitted to client computingdevices of Users 1-5. Each of the prompts can, for example, prompt acorresponding user to select a set list of multiple songs, that satisfyone or more criteria (e.g., the songs of the set list must all beoriginally by a given original musician, originally released during agiven time period (e.g., “in 1983”), and/or of a particular genre). Invarious implementations, each of the prompts can be configured torestrict selections to songs satisfying the criteria. For example, theprompts can each include selectable elements only for songs that satisfythe criteria, can prevent selection of songs that fail to satisfy thecriteria, and/or can restrict searching of songs to only those thatsatisfy the. Moreover, in additional or alternative implementations,each of the prompts can be configured based on user interface inputreceived in response to prior prompts provided to prior user clientcomputing devices. For example, a subsequently transmitted prompt can beconfigured to prevent selection of a set list that includes the samesongs, in the same order, as a set list selected via interactions of aprior user in response to a prior prompt. After Users 1-5 have eachselected a corresponding set list, a ranking or other judging interfacecan be presented to each of Users 1-5 (and/or optionally additionalusers), where each interface enables the corresponding user to providefeedback related to the set list selected by other users. A winner canbe selected based on the feedback, and digital content transmitted toone or more of the client devices of Users 1-5 to inform them of thewinner.

Referring to FIG. 1, a block diagram is provided of an exampleenvironment in which an interface may be provided to users to compete ina video-submission game. The environment includes home player device105, visitor player device 106, judge devices 110 and 111, a videoprovider 115 in communication with a video database 125, and a gameengine 120. The environment also includes a communication network 101that enables communication between various components of theenvironment. In some implementations, the communication network 101 mayinclude the Internet, one or more intranets, and/or one or more bussubsystems. The communication network 101 may optionally utilize one ormore standard communications technologies, protocols, and/orinter-process communication techniques. In some implementations, one ormore components may not be present and/or one or more additionalcomponents may be present.

Home player device 105, visitor player device 106, judge devices 110 and111, game engine 120, and video provider 115 each include one or morememories for storage of data and software applications, one or moreprocessors for accessing data and executing applications, and othercomponents that facilitate communication over a network. The operationsperformed by video provider 115 and/or game engine 120 may bedistributed across multiple computer systems. As used herein, for easeof readability, home player device 105, visitor player device 106, judgedevice 110, and judge device 111 may be collectively referred to as“player devices.” Each member of a group of players may be associatedwith a device (or two or more players may share a device, with eachmember utilizing the device separately) such that the total number ofdevices is the same as the number of members. For example, a group mayinclude five players and each round may include three judges, each witha judge device, one home player device, and one visitor player device.For subsequent rounds, the roles of the player devices may rotate. Forexample, in a later round of player, one of the judge devices may bedesignated home player device 105 and one of the judge devices may bedesignated visitor device 106, as described herein. Although FIG. 1illustrates two judge devices, any number of devices may be included.For example, in a game played by a group of ten players, eight devicescould be designated judge devices, one could be designated a home playerdevice, and one could be designated a visitor player device.

A group of users may provide information to game engine 120 to create agroup of players. For example, a plurality of users may access a webpagevia computing devices and provide information to register in a group. Agroup may register to play a “season,” the season including a number ofrounds. For each round, game engine 120 may determine a matchup of twoplayers of the group, designating one of the players as the home playerand one of the players as the visitor player. Game engine 120 maydetermine a number of matchups for a group so that each player of thegroup plays each of the other players of the group at least once and/orthat each player of the group plays each of the other players twice,once as home player and once as visitor player. Other techniques formatching up players to create a season may be utilized. For example,rounds may include more than two players competing and/or one or morematchups may be determined based on a bracketing system, such as aseries of single elimination championship rounds and/or othertournament-style matchup system.

Referring to FIG. 2, an example of a series of rounds, or a “season,” isprovided. For each round, one of the players of a group comprising“Alice,” “Bob,” and “Chris” is designated the home player, and a secondof the players of the group is designated the visitor player. Forexample, in the first round, “Alice” is designated the home player and“Bob” is designated the visitor player. Additionally, in the firstround, “Chris” is a designated judge. In some implementations where agroup of players includes more than 3 players, all players that are notdesignated as the home player or the visitor player for a round may bedesignated a judge for that round. For example, if the illustrated groupalso included “David,” then David would additionally be a judge for anyrounds where he is not designated the home player or the visitor player.In some implementations, game engine 120 may determine matchups betweenplayers in an alternative fashion. For example, matchups may bedetermined utilizing a bracket-based approach, utilizing one or morecharacteristics of the players (e.g., matching players with similarrankings), and/or one or more other schemes that results in a series ofrounds of play.

In a round of play, game engine 120 may prompt one or more players toprovide a multimedia subject. For example, game engine 120 may promptthe first player to provide a multimedia subject. The prompting may bevia home player device 105 and may be provided through, for example, anemail provided to the player, a message posted to one or more webpagesthat are accessible to the home player, and/or via an applicationexecuting on home player device 105. A multimedia subject may include,for example, a song title, a movie title, a television title, and/or oneor more subjects that is associated with audio/visual performances.Throughout this specification, “song title” will be used as an examplemultimedia subject. In some implementations, the home player provides asong title to game engine 120. Game engine 120 may provide the selectedsong title to one or more of the other players of the group. Forexample, the home player may select a song title, provide the song titleto the game engine 120, and the game engine may provide the selectedsong title to the visitor player.

In some implementations, a multimedia subject may include one or moreartists, composers, and/or other identifying information todifferentiate one multimedia subject from one or more similar multimediasubjects. For example, a song title may be associated with the originalcomposer of the song, one or more particular versions of the song,and/or other information that may differentiate the song from otherversions of the song. In some implementations, additional informationincluded with the multimedia subject may be utilized to determine thevalidity of a selection of media by one or more of the players. Forexample, a multimedia subject may include a song title and the originalartist that performed the song; and one or more components may determinewhether selections by the players are associated with the same songtitle and a different artist than the original artist (i.e., a coverversion).

In some implementations, an entity other than the players of the matchupmay select a multimedia subject and provide the multimedia subject toone or more of the players. For example, one or more components mayselect a multimedia subject and provide the first player with themultimedia subject. Also, for example, a player that is a member of thegroup but that is not a member of the current matchup may select amultimedia subject and provide the subject to the home player and thevisitor player.

Referring to FIG. 3A, a diagram of an example of information transfer ina round of play is provided. Each of the vertical lines represents oneor more players of a round (i.e., the home player, the visitor player,and the judge(s)). Each of the arrowed horizontal lines representsinformation that is transferred between the players. For example, thefirst line, “song selection,” indicates that the home player hasselected a song for the round and an indication of the song is providedto the visitor player. An indication of a “song selection” may include,for example, the name of the song, information related to the song,and/or a reference to a version of the song. The home player may providethe song title to game engine 120, and game engine 120 may subsequentlyprovide the song title to the visitor player. For example, the homeplayer may provide game engine 120 with a song selection via interactionwith one or more applications executing on home player device 105. Forinstance, the home player device 105 may transmit a song selection tothe game engine 120 in response to a selection and/or otherinteraction(s) of the user, via an application, to select the song. Insome implementations, the home player may directly provide the songtitle to the visitor player. For example, the home player may send anemail to the visitor player that includes the song title.

In some implementations, the home player may elect to pass selection ofa multimedia subject to the visitor player. For example, instead ofselecting a song, the home player may respond to the game engine 120with an indication that the visitor player is to select a song titlefirst. Game engine 120 may provide the visitor player with a prompt toselect a song title first in response to the home player responding withthe indication that the visitor player is to select the song titlefirst. For example, referring to FIG. 3B, a diagram of a second exampleof information transfer in a round of play is provided. In this example,the home player sends an indication of “deferral,” the first arrowedhorizontal line. The indication may be provided to game engine 120and/or directly to the visitor player. The visitor player then selects amultimedia subject (e.g., a song title) and provides an indication ofthe selection to game engine 120, which then may provide the song titleto the home player. Additionally or alternatively, the visitor playermay directly provide the song selection to the home player, such as viaemail.

Referring to FIG. 4, an example notification that may be provided to ahome player is provided. The notification 400 includes a defer button405. When provided with the notification 400, the home player may selectthe defer button 405 and an indication may be provided to the visitorplayer via visitor player device 106 to select a song title for theround, as indicated by the “deferral” arrow of FIG. 3B. In someimplementations, the home player may select a song and input the name ofthe song in song text field 410. For example, notification 400 includesa selection of the song “The Star-Spangled Banner” provided by the homeplayer in song text field 410. The home player may then select the OKbutton 415 to provide game engine 120 and/or visitor player device 106with the song selection, “The Star-Spangled Banner.” In someimplementations, the home player may select additional information toprovide to the visitor player and/or the game engine 120. For example,the home player may provide the visitor player and/or the game engine120 with a link to a webpage that includes information related to thesong, such as the author of the song, the original performer of thesong, lyrics to the song, and/or information related to one or moreperformers of the song.

In some implementations where the home player selects the song title,the visitor player selects a video of a performance of the song selectedby the home player. For example, the home player may be provided with aprompt to select a song and the home player may choose “The StarSpangled Banner” and provide game engine 120 with an indication of thesong via home player device 105. Game engine 120 may provide the songtitle to visitor player 106 via visitor player device 106 and visitorplayer 106 may select a video of a performance of the song “The StarSpangled Banner,” such as a video of “Jimi Hendrix” performing “The StarSpangled Banner.”

Visitor player may identify a music video via video provider 115. Insome implementations, video provider 115 may be a web-based service thatprovides access to a searchable database of videos. For example, videoprovider 115 may allow users access to videos stored in video database125. In some implementations, player devices may access video provider115 via one or more web interfaces. For example, a player may accessvideo provider via a webpage, and the player may search and/or selectone or more videos stored in video database 125 via the webpage. In someimplementations, players may select one or more videos from alternativeand/or additional sources. For example, a video may be selected that isstored locally on home player device 105 and/or player device 106. Insome implementations, video provider 115 may be utilized by game engine120 to provide indications of one or more videos to players. Forexample, game engine 120 may utilize video provider 115 to provide stillimages, short clips, and/or other information related to one or morevideos to players. For instance, the game engine 120 can interface(e.g., via an application programming interface) with the video provider115 to cause the video provider 115 to search for videos that are of theselected song, and the game engine 120 can provide information that isrelated to the videos identified by the video provider.

Referring to FIG. 5, an example interface for a player to select a musicvideo is provided. In some implementations, the video selectioninterface 500 may be provided to the home player and/or to the visitorplayer. The interface 500 includes a song selection message 505 toinform the player of the song selection of the other player. Forexample, the home player may select “The Star-Spangled Banner” as thesong selection for a round, as illustrated in FIG. 4, and the visitorplayer may be provided with interface 500 with song selection message505 indicating the selected song for the round. Also, for example, thehome player may defer song selection to the visitor player, the visitorplayer may select a song for the round, and the home player may beprovided with interface 500 with song selection message 505 indicatingthe song that was selected by the visitor player.

In some implementations, video selection interface 500 may include oneor more video suggestions 510A through 510F. For example, videosuggestions 510A through 510F may display screen captures, short clips,and/or other identifying information for one or more potential videos tobe selected by the player. In some implementations, one or more of thevideo suggestions 510A through 510F may be provided by video provider115. For example, the home player may select “Star-Spangled Banner” as asong selection, video provider 115 may identify one or more videos ofversions of “Star-Spangled Banner,” and the visitor player may beprovided video selection interface 500 with video suggestions 510Athrough 510F displaying short clips of the videos identified by videoprovider 115. In this manner, the video suggestions 510A through 510Fcan be tailored to include only video versions of “Star-Spangled Banner”and/or can be tailored to exclude previously selected video versions ofthat song (if any). In some implementations, video selection interface500 may be provided without suggestions of video selections. Forexample, the home player may select a song for a round and the visitormay be provided with only the song selection. The visitor player maythen identify a video selection via one or more online interfaces, suchas a webpage provided by video provider 115, and the visitor player mayprovide an indication of a selected video, such as a link to a webpagethat includes the selected video.

In some implementations, one or more restrictions may be placed on videoselections. For example, in some implementations, a video selection maybe restricted to videos of non-original versions of a song. As anexample, the home player of a round may select “Let It Be” as a songselection. The visitor player may then select a video of a version of“Let It Be,” but may not be permitted to select the original Beatlesversion of the song. For example, one or more graphical interfacesprovided by the game engine 120 for presentation to the visitor playermay exclude any selectable elements for the original Beatles versionand/or may be configured to present an error message in response toselection of the original Beatles version. Also, for example, thevisitor may be restricted from selecting versions performed by one ormore members of the Beatles. Also, for example, the visitor may berestricted from selecting versions of “Let It Be” that reached aparticular level of popularity. For example, the visitor player may berestricted from selecting videos of versions of “Let It Be” that haveappeared on a Top 40 list and/or that have sold more than a certainnumber of copies. In some implementations, video selections may berestricted based on one or more other criteria, such as restrictions tonon-live versions of songs (e.g., a studio-recorded version and not aconcert version). Also, for example, video selections may be limited toamateur versions of songs and/or to videos that include non-professionalaudio and/or video.

Referring to FIG. 6, an example of an interface to prompt a player toselect a video in response to the other player of the round selecting avideo is provided. The interface 600 includes a selected videoindication 605, a message 610, and video suggestions 615A through 615F.In some implementations, interface 600 may be provided to the homeplayer via home player device 105 when the home player selects a songtitle. The interface 600 may be provided to home player after thevisitor player has selected a video, such as after the visitor playerhas been provided an interface that shares one or more characteristicswith interface 500. Also, for example, visitor player may be providedinterface 600 via visitor player device 106 when the home player hasdeferred song title selection to the visitor player, and after the homeplayer has selected a video. Selected video indication 605 may providethe player with an indication of the video selected by his opponent(i.e., the video selected by the home player when interface 600 isprovided to the visitor player, or vice versa). For example, the homeplayer may select a Jimi Hendrix “Star-Spangled Banner” video andinterface 600 may be provided to the visitor player with a short clip ofthe selected video at selected video indication 605. In someimplementations, selected video indication 605 may not be included andthe title and/or artist of the selected video may be provided as amessage 610. In some implementations, video suggestions 615A through615F may include indications of potential videos that may be selected bythe player. Video suggestions 615A through 615F may be provided by videoprovider 115 and may include videos of performances of the selected songtitle that meet one or more other criterion (e.g., cover versions of thesong). In some implementations, the game engine 120 tailors theinterface 600 to exclude, from suggestions 615A through 615F, anysuggestions that fail to satisfy one or more criteria and/or to presentan error message in response to selection of a suggestion that fails tosatisfy one or more criteria. For example, suggestions that are by an“original” artist may be excluded, as well as suggestion(s) that are bythe same artist as the video selected by an opponent (as indicated invideo indication 605).

In some implementations, the player may select one of the videosuggestions 615A through 615F and/or may otherwise indicate a video as aselection for the round. For example, the player may select a video of“Roseanne Barr” singing the “Star-Spangled Banner” as his videoselection for the round by selecting the video from the videosuggestions 615A through 615F and/or by otherwise indicating the video,such as by providing a link to a webpage that includes the video. Oncethe player has selected a video, both players' videos may be provided tothe other members of the group. For example, referring again to FIG. 3A,the home player may select a song, the visitor player may select avideo, the home player may select a video, and then indications of bothvideos may be provided to the other players of the group who are judgesfor the round. Also, for example, referring again to FIG. 3B, the homeplayer may defer to the visitor player, the visitor player may select asong, the home player may select a video, the visitor player may selecta video, and then both videos may be provided to the other players forjudging.

Referring to FIG. 7, an example interface is illustrated that may beprovided to players of a group to judge the videos of a round of play.The interface 700 includes a message 705, the home player videoindication 710, the visitor player video indication 715, home playervoting button 720, visitor player voting button 725, and a comments box730. In some implementations, interface 700 may be provided to thejudges via judge devices 110 and 111. For example, in a group with fivemembers, three of the members may be provided interface 700 via judgedevices. In some implementations, one or more features of interface 700may not be present. For example, in some implementations, interface 700may not include comments box 730, and the judges may only have an optionto select one of the two videos.

In some implementations, the judges may view the home player's video viahome player video indication 710. For example, home player videoindication 710 may be a viewing frame and video provider 115 accessvideo database 125 and provide the video to the judge in home playervideo indication 710. In some implementations, a judge may select homeplayer video indication 710 and be directed to a webpage that includesthe video. For example, a judge may select home player video indication710 via a browser executing on judge device 110 and the browser may bedirected to a webpage provided by video provider 115 that includes thehome player video selection. The judge may then view the video.Similarly, visitor player video selection indication 715 may be a framethat provides the visitor player video selection to the judge and/or ajudge may select visitor player video selection indication 715 and bedirected to a webpage that includes the visitor player video.

In some implementations, judges may provide written commentary viacomments box 730. For example, in addition to selecting one of thevideos as a preferred video by selecting home player voting button 720or visitor player voting button 725, a judge may provide writtencommentary to indicate, for example, why he selected one of the videosover the other video, what he liked and/or disliked about the videos,and/or provide additional opinions related to the round of videos.

As an example, a judge may be provided with a home player video of JimiHendrix performing the “Star-Spangled Banner” and a visitor player videoof Roseanne Barr performing the “Star-Spangled Banner.” The judge mayselect the Roseanne Barr video as the winner, and further providecommentary of “I chose Roseanne because I think she is funny and a greatsinger.” The judge's video choice and commentary may be provided to gameengine 120, which may additionally receive the rest of the judges'choices and determine a winner for the round.

In some implementations, a winner of a round may be determined by gameengine 120 based on the judge ratings for a round. For example, for agroup of five players, “Alice” may have been designated home player and“Bob” may have been designated visitor player. After the judges “Chris,”“Dave,” and “Eric” are provided with the home player and visitor playervideos, each of the judges may determine which of the videos ispreferred. If Chris and Dave chose Alice and Eric chose Bob, then gameengine 120 may determine that Alice is the winner of the round. In someimplementations, a score may be determined for each player in a round.For example, in the preceding example, Alice may be given a score of twoand Bob may be given a score of 1. In some implementations, the judgesmay score each of the videos, such as by providing a score from one toten for each of the videos, and game engine 120 may utilize the scoresto determine a winner for the round. For example, in the precedingexample, Alice may receive scores of 2 from Chris, 5 from Dave, and 8from Eric; and Bob may receive scores of 3 from Chris, 3 from Dave, and3 from Eric; and game engine 120 may determine that Alice is the winnerby summing each player's scores and determining the player with thehighest score (i.e., 15 for Alice and 9 for Bob) and/or the highestaverage score (i.e., an average of 5 for Alice and an average of 3 forBob). Commentary of judges may be provided to the players of thematchup, to all players of the group, and/or to one or more membersoutside of the group. For example, a group of players may play a seriesof rounds that are accessible to the public and judge commentary may ormay not be accessible to one or more viewers of the round results.

Referring to FIG. 8, a flowchart of an example method for determining awinner of a round of an online game is provided. Other implementationsmay perform the steps in a different order, omit certain steps, and/orperform different and/or additional steps than those illustrated in FIG.8. For convenience, aspects of FIG. 8 will be described with referenceto one or more components of FIG. 1 that may perform the method, such asgame engine 120.

At step 800, a matchup is determined between a first player, and asecond player. In some implementations, the first player and secondplayer may be identified from a group of players. For example, a groupof five players may be identified and the first player and the secondplayer may be selected from the group. In some implementations, thematchup of the first player and the second player may be determined by acomponent that shares one or more characteristics with game engine 120.In some implementations, the first player and the second player may bedesignated the “home” player and the “visitor” player.

At step 805, the first player provides a multimedia subject, such as asong title. In some implementations, step 805 includes receiving themultimedia subject at a remote computing device in response to selectionof the multimedia subject at a client device of the first player. Forexample, the first player can select the multimedia subject at theclient device and, in response to the selection, the client device cantransmit (e.g., via a wide area network) an indication of the multimediasubject to the remote computing device. In some implementations, thefirst player may provide the song title in response to being providedwith a prompt via a computing device, such as home player device 105and/or visitor player device 106. In some implementations, the firstplayer may provide the song title in response to receiving an indicationthat the second player has chosen to defer song selection. For example,in some implementations, the second player may be provided with anoption to either select a song title or defer song selection to thefirst player, and the second player may elect to defer selection. Thefirst player may provide a song title in response to receiving anindication of the second player's deferral. In some implementations,this step may be omitted and/or the multimedia subject may be providedby one or more other components and/or players. For example, game engine120 may randomly select a song title, game engine 120 may identify amultimedia subject that is currently popular and/or trending, and/or oneor more other players of the group may select a song title to provide tothe first player and the second player.

At step 810, the second player is provided with an indication of thesong that was selected by the first player. For example, the secondplayer may be provided with an email and/or other indication of the nameof the song that was selected by the first player. In someimplementations, the second player may be provided with additionalinformation related to the song, such as the original artist thatperformed the song, indications of popular versions of the song, and/orthe artist that wrote the song. In some implementations, a remotecomputing device transmits the indication of the song to a client deviceof the second player. For example, the remote computing device cantransmit a graphical interface, that includes the indication of thesong, to the client device of the second player.

At step 815, a multimedia selection is received from the second player.In some implementations, step 815 includes receiving the multimediaselection at a remote computing device in response to selection of themultimedia selection at a client device of the second player. Forexample, the second player can select the multimedia selection at theclient device and, in response to the selection, the client device cantransmit (e.g., via a wide area network) an indication of the multimediaselection to the remote computing device. The multimedia selection mayinclude, for example, a combination of audio and/or video. For example,a multimedia selection may include a publically-available online musicvideo, and may include audio of a particular song and video of aperformance of the song and/or a video provided with the audio. In someimplementations, the multimedia selection of the second player isprovided in response providing the second player with the song selectionof the first player. For example, the first player may select “Crimsonand Clover” as the song title for the round, and the second player mayselect a music video that is a performance of the song “Crimson andClover.” In some implementations, game engine 120 may determine whetherthe selected multimedia selection is an allowable selection and/or mayotherwise restrict the multimedia selection to allowable selections(e.g., those that satisfy one or more criteria). For example, gameengine 120 may identify one or more music videos that are not allowable,such as an original version of the song and/or one or more versions thatachieved a determined level of success, and prompt the second player fora different selection if the initially selected version is notauthorized.

At step 820, an indication of the second player's multimedia selectionis provided to the first player. In some implementations, a remotecomputing device transmits the indication of the second player'smultimedia selection to a client device of the first player. Forexample, the remote computing device can transmit a graphical interface,that includes an indication of the second player's multimedia selection,to the client device of the first player. In some implementations, themultimedia selection may be on online video and the indication may be asong title and artist, a link to a video, and/or other identifyinginformation. In some implementations, the indication may be provided tothe first player only when the selection is allowable, as described instep 815.

At step 825, a multimedia selection of the first player is received. Insome implementations, step 825 may share one or more characteristicswith step 815. In some implementations, game engine 120 may verify thatthe version of the multimedia subject selected by the first player isnot the same as the selection of the second player and/or may otherwiserestrict the multimedia selection to allowable selections (e.g., thosethat satisfy one or more criteria). For example, in addition toverifying that the selection is allowable, as described in step 815,game engine 120 may further verify that the creator of the firstplayer's selection is different than the creator of the second player'sselection.

At step 830, the selections of the first player and the second playerare provided to one or more of the other players of the group. Theselections may be provided via an interface that shares one or morecharacteristics with the interface provided in FIG. 7. In someimplementations, all of the players of the group, excluding the playersof the matchup, may be provided with indications of the selections. Theindications may include, for example, links to the selections, aninterface where the selections may be viewed (such as FIG. 7), and/orone or more other interfaces.

At step 835, ratings of the multimedia selections may be received fromthe players that were provided the selections at step 830. In someimplementations, each of the ratings may include a selection of one ofthe player selections over the other player selection. For example, foreach of the judging players that are provided the selections of thefirst player and the second player, the judging player may select eitherthe first player's selection or the second player's selection as thepreferred selection. In some implementations, judging players mayadditionally or optionally include a written opinion of either or bothof the provided selections. For example, judging players may provide anexplanation of why they selected a preferred selection. In someimplementations, judging players may be limited to a time period toprovide a selection. For example, judging players may be required toprovide a preferred selection within 48 hours, and any late submissionsmay not be utilized to determine an overall winner of the round. In someimplementations, a judging player and/or matched-up player may requestextensions of time if the player determines that he will be unable tosubmit a selection and/or judge selections within the required timeperiod.

At step 840, a winner of the matchup is determined based on the ratingsof the judging players. For example, the judging players may each selectone of the two selections as a preferred selection, and the winner maybe determined based on which of the players' selections was chosen bymore judges. Also, for example, the judges may rate each selection on ascale, such as giving each selection a rating between 1 and 10, and thewinner of a matchup may be determined based on which of the selectionshas a higher average rating.

Referring to FIG. 9, a flowchart of an example method for determiningrounds of play for an online game and determining scores for each roundis provided. Other implementations may perform the steps in a differentorder, omit certain steps, and/or perform different and/or additionalsteps than those illustrated in FIG. 9. For convenience, aspects of FIG.9 will be described with reference to one or more components of FIG. 1that may perform the method, such as game engine 120.

At step 900, a group of players is identified. Step 900 may share one ormore characteristics with step 800 of FIG. 8. For example, a group offive players may be identified and the first player and the secondplayer may be selected from the group.

At step 905, a deferral is received from the first player. In someimplementations, the first player may be provided with an option toeither select a multimedia subject, such as a song title, or defer theselection of a multimedia subject to the second player.

At step 910, a multimedia subject is received from the second player. Insome implementations, step 910 may share one or more characteristicswith step 805 of FIG. 8. For example, the second player may select asong title, a video title, and/or other indication of a subject of amultimedia file.

At step 915, either a multimedia selection or a deferral is receivedfrom the first player. In some implementations, the received multimediaselection may be an indication of media file that contains a third partyrendition of the multimedia subject. For example, the first player mayselect “Star Spangled Banner” as a multimedia subject and the secondplayer may select a multimedia file that contains an audiovisualrendition of an artist performing “The Star Spangled Banner.” In someimplementations, the first player may choose to defer selection of amultimedia subject to the second player. In implementations where thefirst player defers, a multimedia subject may be selected by the secondplayer and the first player may select a multimedia file that containsan audiovisual rendition of an artist performing the multimedia subject(e.g., a music video of a version of a multimedia subject that is a songtitle).

At step 920, a multimedia selection is received from the second player.In some implementations, step 920 may share one or more characteristicswith step 915. For example, the second play may provide an indication ofa multimedia file that contains a third-party rendition of themultimedia subject. In some implementations, one or more restrictionsmay be placed on multimedia selections. For example, the first playerand the second player may be prohibited from selection multimedia filesthat are performed by the original artist of the multimedia subjectand/or by an artist that gained a threshold level of popularity for themultimedia subject (e.g., the artist that made a song popular, even ifnot the original artist). In some implementations, the second player maybe prohibited from selecting a multimedia file that is by the samecreator as the multimedia file that was selected by the first player.For example, if the first player selected “Knockin' On Heaven's Door” byBob Dylan as a multimedia selection, the second player may be requiredto select a different artist's rendition and/or a different rendition bythe same artist. In some instances, the first player may select themultimedia subject at step 915 and the second player may select a videofirst. In some instances, the first player may defer at step 915, thesecond player may select the song title, and the first player may selecta version first at step 920.

At step 925, one or more of the other players of the group are providedthe multimedia selections of the first player and the second player. Insome implementations, step 925 may share one or more characteristicswith step 830 of FIG. 8.

At step 930, ratings of the multimedia selections are received. Theratings may be received from the other players of the group that wereprovided the multimedia selections of the first player and the secondplayer. In some implementations, step 930 may share one or morecharacteristics with step 835 of FIG. 8.

At step 935, a winner of the matchup is determined. The matchup may bedetermined by a component that shares one or more characteristics withgame engine 120. In some implementations, step 935 may share one or morecharacteristics with step 840 of FIG. 8.

FIG. 10 is a block diagram of an example computer system 1010. Computersystem 1010 typically includes at least one processor 1014 whichcommunicates with a number of peripheral devices via bus subsystem 1012.These peripheral devices may include a storage subsystem 1024,including, for example, a memory subsystem 1026 and a file storagesubsystem 1028, viewer interface input devices 1022, viewer interfaceoutput devices 1020, and a network interface subsystem 1016. The inputand output devices allow viewer interaction with computer system 1010.Network interface subsystem 1016 provides an interface to outsidenetworks and is coupled to corresponding interface devices in othercomputer systems.

Viewer interface input devices 1022 may include a keyboard, pointingdevices such as a mouse, trackball, touchpad, or graphics tablet, ascanner, a touchscreen incorporated into the display, audio inputdevices such as voice recognition systems, microphones, and/or othertypes of input devices. In general, use of the term “input device” isintended to include all possible types of devices and ways to inputinformation into computer system 1010 or onto a communication network.Viewer interface output devices 1020 may include a display subsystem, aprinter, a fax machine, or non-visual displays such as audio outputdevices. The display subsystem may include a cathode ray tube (CRT), aflat-panel device such as a liquid crystal display (LCD), a projectiondevice, or some other mechanism for creating a visible image. Thedisplay subsystem may also provide non-visual display such as via audiooutput devices. In general, use of the term “output device” is intendedto include all possible types of devices and ways to output informationfrom computer system 1010 to the viewer or to another machine orcomputer system.

Storage subsystem 1024 stores programming and data constructs thatprovide the functionality of some or all of the modules describedherein. For example, the storage subsystem 1024 may include the logic toprovide an interface to execute an online competition.

These software modules are generally executed by processor 1014 alone orin combination with other processors. Memory 1026 used in the storagesubsystem 1024 can include a number of memories including a main randomaccess memory (RAM) 1030 for storage of instructions and data duringprogram execution and a read only memory (ROM) 1032 in which fixedinstructions are stored. A file storage subsystem 1028 can providepersistent storage for program and data files, and may include a harddisk drive, a floppy disk drive along with associated removable media, aCD-ROM drive, an optical drive, or removable media cartridges. Themodules implementing the functionality of certain implementations may bestored by file storage subsystem 1028 in the storage subsystem 1024, orin other machines accessible by the processor(s) 1014.

Bus subsystem 1012 provides a mechanism for letting the variouscomponents and subsystems of computer system 1010 communicate with eachother as intended. Although bus subsystem 1012 is shown schematically asa single bus, alternative implementations of the bus subsystem may usemultiple busses.

Computer system 1010 can be of varying types including a workstation,server, computing cluster, blade server, server farm, or any other dataprocessing system or computing device. Due to the ever-changing natureof computers and networks, the description of computer system 1010depicted in FIG. 10 is intended only as a specific example for purposesof illustrating some implementations. Many other configurations ofcomputer system 1010 are possible having more or fewer components thanthe computer system depicted in FIG. 10.

While several inventive implementations have been described andillustrated herein, those of ordinary skill in the art will readilyenvision a variety of other means and/or structures for performing thefunction and/or obtaining the results and/or one or more of theadvantages described herein, and each of such variations and/ormodifications is deemed to be within the scope of the inventiveimplementations described herein. More generally, those skilled in theart will readily appreciate that all parameters, dimensions, materials,and configurations described herein are meant to be exemplary and thatthe actual parameters, dimensions, materials, and/or configurations willdepend upon the specific application or applications for which theinventive teachings is/are used. Those skilled in the art willrecognize, or be able to ascertain using no more than routineexperimentation, many equivalents to the specific inventiveimplementations described herein. It is, therefore, to be understoodthat the foregoing implementations are presented by way of example onlyand that, within the scope of the appended claims and equivalentsthereto, inventive implementations may be practiced otherwise than asspecifically described and claimed. Inventive implementations of thepresent disclosure are directed to each individual feature, system,article, material, kit, and/or method described herein. In addition, anycombination of two or more such features, systems, articles, materials,kits, and/or methods, if such features, systems, articles, materials,kits, and/or methods are not mutually inconsistent, is included withinthe inventive scope of the present disclosure.

All definitions, as defined and used herein, should be understood tocontrol over vocabulary definitions, definitions in documentsincorporated by reference, and/or ordinary meanings of the definedterms.

The indefinite articles “a” and “an,” as used herein in thespecification and in the claims, unless clearly indicated to thecontrary, should be understood to mean “at least one.”

The phrase “and/or,” as used herein in the specification and in theclaims, should be understood to mean “either or both” of the elements soconjoined, i.e., elements that are conjunctively present in some casesand disjunctively present in other cases. Multiple elements listed with“and/or” should be construed in the same fashion, i.e., “one or more” ofthe elements so conjoined. Other elements may optionally be presentother than the elements specifically identified by the “and/or” clause,whether related or unrelated to those elements specifically identified.Thus, as a non-limiting example, a reference to “A and/or B”, when usedin conjunction with open-ended language such as “comprising” can refer,in one implementation, to A only (optionally including elements otherthan B); in another implementation, to B only (optionally includingelements other than A); in yet another implementation, to both A and B(optionally including other elements); etc.

As used herein in the specification and in the claims, “or” should beunderstood to have the same meaning as “and/or” as defined above. Forexample, when separating items in a list, “or” or “and/or” shall beinterpreted as being inclusive, i.e., the inclusion of at least one, butalso including more than one, of a number or list of elements, and,optionally, additional unlisted items. Only terms clearly indicated tothe contrary, such as “only one of” or “exactly one of,” or, when usedin the claims, “consisting of,” will refer to the inclusion of exactlyone element of a number or list of elements. In general, the term “or”as used herein shall only be interpreted as indicating exclusivealternatives (i.e. “one or the other but not both”) when preceded byterms of exclusivity, such as “either,” “one of,” “only one of,” or“exactly one of.” “Consisting essentially of,” when used in the claims,shall have its ordinary meaning as used in the field of patent law.

As used herein in the specification and in the claims, the phrase “atleast one,” in reference to a list of one or more elements, should beunderstood to mean at least one element selected from any one or more ofthe elements in the list of elements, but not necessarily including atleast one of each and every element specifically listed within the listof elements and not excluding any combinations of elements in the listof elements. This definition also allows that elements may optionally bepresent other than the elements specifically identified within the listof elements to which the phrase “at least one” refers, whether relatedor unrelated to those elements specifically identified. Thus, as anon-limiting example, “at least one of A and B” (or, equivalently, “atleast one of A or B,” or, equivalently “at least one of A and/or B”) canrefer, in one implementation, to at least one, optionally including morethan one, A, with no B present (and optionally including elements otherthan B); in another implementation, to at least one, optionallyincluding more than one, B, with no A present (and optionally includingelements other than A); in yet another implementation, to at least one,optionally including more than one, A, and at least one, optionallyincluding more than one, B (and optionally including other elements);etc.

It should also be understood that, unless clearly indicated to thecontrary, in any methods claimed herein that include more than one stepor act, the order of the steps or acts of the method is not necessarilylimited to the order in which the steps or acts of the method arerecited.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A method implemented by one or moreprocessors, comprising: determining a matchup of at least a first playerand a second player of a group of players; identifying one or morecriteria for multimedia selection for the matchup; receiving, via atleast one communication network, a first player selection made by thefirst player via a first player computing device, wherein the firstplayer selection is an indication of one or more multimedia files thatsatisfy the one or more criteria for multimedia selection for thematchup; providing, via the communication network, a second playercomputing device of the second player with an indication of the one ormore criteria for multimedia selection for the matchup; receiving, viathe communication network in response to providing the indication, asecond player selection made by the second player via the second playercomputing device, wherein the second player selection is an additionalindication of one or more additional multimedia files that satisfy theone or more criteria for multimedia selection for the matchup; providingindications of the first player selection and the second playerselection to one or more judges, the one or more judges includingplayers of the group of players that are not the first player and arenot the second player, wherein providing the indications is via thecommunication network and includes providing the indications tocorresponding computing devices of the players of the group of playersthat are not the first player and are not the second player; receiving,via the communications network in response to providing the indicationsto the judges, ratings of the first player selection and the secondplayer selection by each of one or more players of the group of playersthat are not the first player and are not the second player; determininga winner of the matchup based on the ratings; and transmitting, via thecommunication network, a graphical interface that identifies the winnerof the matchup, the graphical interface transmitted for presentation toone or more of the players of the group of players.
 2. The method ofclaim 1, wherein identifying the one or more criteria for the multimediaselection for the matchup includes: transmitting a prompt to the firstplayer computing device; and receiving, from the first player computingdevice in response to transmitting the prompt, the one or more criteriafor the multimedia selection for the matchup, wherein the one or morecriteria for the multimedia selection for the matchup are based on userinterface input generated through interaction of the first player withat least one user interface input device of the first player computingdevice.
 3. The method of claim 2, wherein providing the second playercomputing device of the second player with an indication of the one ormore criteria for multimedia selection for the matchup occurs inresponse to receiving the criteria for the multimedia selection for thematchup from the first player computing device in response to theprompt.
 4. The method of claim 3, wherein receiving the first playerselection made by the first player via the first player computing deviceoccurs after receiving the second player selection made by the secondplayer via the second player computing device.
 5. The method of claim 4,further comprising: transmitting a selection prompt to the first playercomputing device after receiving the second player selection made by thesecond player via the second player computing device; wherein receivingthe first player selection made by the first player via the first playercomputing device is in response to interaction of the first player withthe selection prompt.
 6. The method of claim 5, further comprising:generating the selection prompt based on both: the second playerselection, and the one or more criteria for multimedia selection for thematchup.
 7. The method of claim 6, wherein generating the selectionprompt based on both: the second player selection, and the one or morecriteria for multimedia selection for the matchup comprises: generatingthe prompt to include suggestions only for selections that are not thesame as the second player selection, and that satisfy the one or morecriteria for multimedia selection for the matchup.
 8. The method ofclaim 5, further comprising: generating the selection prompt based onthe second player selection, or the one or more criteria for multimediaselection for the matchup.
 9. The method of claim 1, wherein identifyingthe one or more criteria for the multimedia selection for the matchupincludes: transmitting a prompt to the first player computing device,wherein the prompt presents the first player with: a selection optionthat enables the user to define the one or more criteria for themultimedia selection for the matchup and causes the second player tofirst make a selection that satisfies the one or more criteria, and adeferral option that enables the second player to define the one or morecriteria for the multimedia selection for the matchup and causes thefirst player to first make a selection that satisfies the one or morecriteria; in response to selection of the deferral option via the firstplayer computing device: transmitting, to the second player computingdevice, a criteria prompt that prompts the second user to define the oneor more criteria for the multimedia selection for the matchup; andreceiving, in response to the criteria prompt, the one or more criteriafor the multimedia selection for the matchup.
 10. The method of claim 1,wherein the first player selection is a first set list that defines aplurality of first songs and a sequence for the first songs, and whereinthe second player selection is a second set list that defines aplurality of second songs and a sequence for the second songs.
 11. Themethod of claim 10, wherein the one or more criteria for the multimediaselection for the matchup include one or more of: at least one originalartist criteria, and at least one temporal criteria.
 12. The method ofclaim 11, wherein the one or more criteria for the multimedia selectionfor the matchup include the at least one temporal criteria, and whereinthe at least one temporal criteria defines at least one calendar year.13. The method of claim 1, wherein the first player selection is a firstmusic video that is a cover version of a first song by an originalartist, and wherein the second player selection is a second music videothat is a cover version of a second song by the original artist.
 14. Themethod of claim 13, wherein the one or more criteria for the multimediaselection for the matchup include the original artist, and whereinidentifying the one or more criteria comprises automatically identifyingthe original artist based on recent death of the original artist. 15.The method of claim 1, wherein providing indications of the first playerselection and the second player selection to the one or more judgescomprises: providing an indication of the first player selection to thesecond player and to the players of the group of players that are notthe first player and are not the second player; and providing anindication of the second player selection to the first player and to theplayers of the group of players that are not the first player and arenot the second player.
 16. The method of claim 1, further comprising:receiving, via the communication network, a third player selection madeby a third player via a third player computing device, wherein the thirdplayer selection is an indication of one or more multimedia files thatsatisfy the one or more criteria for multimedia selection for thematchup; providing indications of the third player selection to at leastthe first player and the second player; and receiving, in response toproviding the indications of the third player selection, ratings of thethird player selection by at least the first player and the secondplayer; wherein determining the winner of the matchup is further basedon the ratings of the third player selection.
 17. A system, comprising:at least one network interface; memory storing instructions; and one ormore processors operable to execute the instructions in the memory,wherein the instructions comprise instructions to: determine a matchupof at least a first player and a second player of a group of players;identify one or more criteria for multimedia selection for the matchup;receive, via the at least one network interface, a first playerselection made by the first player via a first player computing device,wherein the first player selection is an indication of one or moremultimedia files that satisfy the one or more criteria for multimediaselection for the matchup; provide, via the at least one networkinterface, a second player computing device of the second player with anindication of the one or more criteria for multimedia selection for thematchup; receive, via the at least one network interface in response toproviding the indication, a second player selection made by the secondplayer via the second player computing device, wherein the second playerselection is an additional indication of one or more additionalmultimedia files that satisfy the one or more criteria for multimediaselection for the matchup; provide, via the at least one networkinterface, indications of the first player selection and the secondplayer selection to corresponding computing devices of one or morejudges, the one or more judges including players of the group of playersthat are not the first player and are not the second player; receive,via the at least one network interface in response to providing theindications to the judges, ratings of the first player selection and thesecond player selection by each of one or more players of the group ofplayers that are not the first player and are not the second player;determine a winner of the matchup based on the ratings; andtransmitting, via the at least one network interface, a graphicalinterface that identifies the winner of the matchup, the graphicalinterface transmitted for presentation to one or more of the players ofthe group of players.